John Deere, a company synonymous with American ingenuity, liberty, patenting a certain shade of green and farmers fending off the advances of women fresh from the catwalk. And farming, I guess.
Unfortunately in recent years, John Deere has also been hard at work in the fields of "bricking", monopoly law, and vehemently opposing the right to repair. The company's become notorious for refusing farmers the ability to repair their own machinery. This reputation can't be great for country musicians,either. How on earth is Garth Brooks supposed to sing about not being able to get his tractor running without a certified technician from an authorized John Deere dealer? That's way too many syllables to fit into a country song title. "She Thinks My Tractor's Sexy" is pushing it. Luckily; John Deere's crop yield actually seems to be failing this season.
"For years, very little happened to slow down John Deere's march toward total control of the repair market. But interviews with farmers, activists, and lawyers, and a review of court records reveal a turn in the story: There is increased scrutiny on Deere's repair practices not just in this class action lawsuit, but from state legislators, the White House, and a series of federal agencies. The walls on Deere's repair monopoly may finally be closing in." … "The DOJ filing specifically attacks some of Deere's legal arguments, in which it asserted, essentially, that antitrust law should not apply in this case because farmers sign terms of use agreements with the company that outline its policies. The DOJ lawyers wrote "This court should reject Deere's argument that deception or surprise is required to delineate a repair aftermarket."
JASON KOEBLER, 404 MEDIA
Deere has also tried to argue that farmers might butcher their equipment when trying to commit home repairs, and in turn make the machinery fail emission standards. The DOJ rightfully saw this line of reasoning as a load of green hogwash and knocked it aside as well.
The DOJ issuing statements in support of consumer rights is a great step in ensuring the continuation of anti trust legislation in the US.
